Tuesday, January 15, 2008

11th Annual Sphinx Competition Presented by Chase Honors Top Black and Latino Musicians


Stephan Bobalik, Manager of Foundation and Media Relations for The Sphinx Organization, has issued this press release today:

Young Musicians Compete for Prizes and Scholarships

(Detroit, MI) For eleven years, the Sphinx Organization has been a force of change in the classical music world. The Sphinx Competition presented by Chase has identified, rewarded, and promoted the country’s top young Black and Latino String players. This year, 18 semi-finalists from across the country will converge in Ann Arbor and Detroit to compete for their shot at scholarships, cash prizes, and performance opportunities with top orchestras around the country. The semi-finalists range in age from 13 years old to 25 years old and include past Sphinx Competition semi-finalists and a past Junior Division Laureate seeking Senior Division honors.

Five days of performance and competition culminate in the Finals Concert on January 27 at 2:00 PM in Orchestra Hall at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit. The concert will include the three senior division finalists and junior division Laureate performing with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra. At the conclusion of the concert, one performer will be named First Place Laureate.

Tickets to the Finals Concert are just $12 and available through the Max M. Fisher Music Center Box office at (313) 576-5111 or at www.detroitsymphony.com. Groups of ten or more can get discounted tickets by calling (313) 576-5130.

The final round of the Junior Division Competition, for those musicians under 18, takes place on Friday, January 25 at 12:00 PM at Rackham Auditorium in Ann Arbor.

The Harlem Quartet will perform as special guest artists during the Finals Concert. The Quartet will join the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra for a performance of Michael Abels’ Delights and Dances arranged for string orchestra and quartet. Delights and Dances was commissioned by Sphinx to celebrate its first ten years. The Commission was sponsored by the ASCAP Foundation/Irving Caesar Fund and was premiered on February 11, 2007.

The Sphinx Symphony Orchestra is a one-of-a-kind ensemble comprised of professional Black and Latino musicians from around the world. The Orchestra includes present and former members of the Atlanta Symphony, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, and other top orchestras. Maestro Tito Munoz, the 24-year old assistant conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra, will lead the orchestra.

Through the Sphinx Organization’s Professional Development Program, past Laureates have gone on to play solo performances with top orchestras around the country including the Detroit Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Boston Pops, and many others.

The Sphinx Organization was established in 1996 by Aaron Dworkin with a mission to increase Black and Latino participation in music schools, as professional musicians, as classical music audiences, and to administer youth development initiatives in underserved communities through music education. In addition to the Competition, the Sphinx Organization’s educational programs reach over 35,000 students around the country. Chase has been longtime supporters of the Sphinx Organization and annual competition. Sphinx has been featured on NPR, PBS, NBC’s Today, CNN, and in The New York Times, Strings, and Ebony. In ten years, the Sphinx Competition has awarded over $1,000,000 in prizes and scholarships.

For the past eight years, Chase has supported the Sphinx Organization in programs that expand opportunities for Black and Latino youth musicians. Chase, with more than 3,000 bank branches and 9,000 ATMs across the country, is a strong community partner investing in education, arts and culture, and economic development programs that allow people and communities to thrive.

Sphinx+Competition" rel="tag">Sphinx Competition
classical+music" rel="tag">classical music
Black+Musicians" rel="tag">Black Musicians
Latino+Musicians" rel="tag">Latino Musicians
Aaron+Dworkin" rel="tag">Aaron Dworkin
Sphinx+Organization" rel="tag">Sphinx Organization

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